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The Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros close their three-game series tonight at Daikin Park on Sunday Night Baseball, with Bryan Woo facing Hunter Brown in the rubber match.

Houston is a -129 moneyline favorite, while Seattle is +121 with the total set at 7.5.

Our Mariners vs. Astros predictions are backing the Astros behind Brown's contact suppression. Read on for our MLB picks for Sunday, Aug. 16.

For more on this game, read Colby Marchio's Mariners vs. Astros props.

Who will win Mariners vs Astros today: Astros moneyline (-120)

The Houston Astros are my moneyline pick because their biggest offensive strength attacks Bryan Woo's clearest weakness.

Houston owns an .859 OPS against right-handed pitching at home over the last 30 days, the best mark in MLB over that span.

Woo has allowed a 43.5% hard-hit rate, ranking in the 13th percentile, while his four-seamer has been hit hard 44.3% of the time.

Hunter Brown provides the opposite matchup, holding opponents to an 85.7-mph average exit velocity and 36.2% hard-hit rate.

I'd play to -140.

Mariners vs Astros Over/Under pick: Under 7.5 (+101)

The Seattle Mariners' recent offensive form runs directly into Brown's greatest strength.

Seattle owns just a .660 OPS over the last seven days, and Brown has been one of baseball's best pitchers at limiting any type of hard contact.

Brown ranks in the 95th percentile in hard-hit rate, allowing just a 36.2% mark with an 85.7-mph average exit velocity and .334 xSLG.

Woo has also limited barrels to 6.7%, despite allowing more general hard contact. Seattle's matchup with Brown makes it difficult for both offenses to contribute enough to clear 7.5.

I'd play to -118, or +110 at 7.

Mariners vs Astros home run prediction: Yordan Alvarez (+276)

Woo throws his four-seamer and sinker on 65.8% of his pitches, and Yordan Alvarez has destroyed both offerings. He carries a .796 xSLG, .516 xwOBA, and 59.1% hard-hit rate against four-seamers, plus a .584 xSLG and .439 xwOBA against sinkers.

If Alvarez gets anything competitive, then this matchup sets up well for him.

Mariners vs Astros weather

Houston is forecast to remain around 95 degrees near first pitch, but Daikin Park's roof guidelines call for closure when the temperature or heat index exceeds 77 degrees, so I expect a climate-controlled matchup.

Mariners vs Astros odds

• Moneyline: Mariners +120 | Astros -130
• Run line: Mariners +1.5 | Astros -1.5
• Over/Under: Over 7.5 | Under 7.5

Mariners vs Astros trend

The Astros have covered the run line in 29 of their last 50 games (+10.75 Units / 17% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Mariners vs. Astros.

How to watch Mariners vs Astros and game info

Mariners vs Astros latest injuries

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Sunday Night Baseball between the Mariners and Astros should be an exciting matchup.

I'll be highlighting why Yordan Alvarez is a great look in my Mariners vs. Astros props and MLB picks for Sunday, Aug. 16.

For more on this game, read Chris Hatfield's Mariners vs. Astros predictions.

Mariners vs Astros props for August 16

Mariners vs Astros player prop picks

Yordan Alvarez Over 1.5 total bases (-115)

Don't worry, the good people over at FanDuel are offering a 30% boost for this matchup, which gets Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez up to +114 if you want to take advantage.

Regardless, the lone elite-rated hitter in this matchup on Batters-Box covers 100% of Seattle Mariners right-hander Bryan Woo's pitch mix. On top of that, in 21 elite ratings at home this season, Alvarez has recorded at least a hit 90.48% of the time, two hits 52.38% of the time, and has gone Over this prop 71.43% of the time.

Over the big fella's last 10 games, he owns a 50% hard-hit rate and 13.3% barrel rate. Woo has allowed the last 30 lefties he has faced to produce a 58% hard-hit rate and 21.1% ground-ball rate.

Alvarez has been crushing the baseball as of late, and he broke his home run drought on Friday. Look for more bases this evening.

Take this prop down to -120, or take his alt line of 3+ hits, runs, and RBI.

Taylor Trammell Over 0.5 hits (-135)

Astros outfielder Taylor Trammell doing the bare minimum this evening feels worth paying the $1.35 juice. The 28-year-old has been crushing right-handed pitching, generating a 53% hard-hit rate and 23.5% barrel rate while owning a .308 ISO and .462 SLG over his last 30 at-bats against righties.

With Woo allowing a ton of hard-hit balls to left-handed bats and Trammell swinging it so well against right-handed pitching, simply putting the ball in play and reaching base safely feels very doable.

Use the boost, or take this down to -140.

Hunter Brown Over 17.5 outs (-130)

Houston Astros right-hander Hunter Brown has been shoving all season long, and he draws one of the coldest lineups in baseball on Sunday night. The Seattle Mariners' offense over their last 21 games owns a 94 wRC+, .302 wOBA, and .678 OPS.

The top of the lineup has gone extremely cold over their last 30 at-bats against right-handed pitching. Taylor Ward, Cole Young, Randy Arozarena, and Dominic Canzone all have batting averages of .250 or worse, on-base percentages of .267 or worse, and barrel rates of 5% or worse.

Brown has been fantastic over his last five starts, posting a 3.81 ERA, 3.21 xERA, and 1.13 WHIP. The right-hander has also done a great job limiting hard-hit balls during that stretch.

With Brown owning the second-highest pitcher rating on the day, along with an elite-rated matchup wOBA, ISO, strikeout rate, and ground-ball rate, I trust him to go six full innings.

Take this down to -140.

How to watch Mariners vs Astros and game info

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Mets lineup

1. A.J. Ewing – CF
2. Francisco Lindor – SS
3. Bo Bichette – 3B
4. Carson Benge – RF
5. Jared Young – 1B
6. Luis Robert – LF
7. Brett Baty – 2B
8. Jorge Polanco – DH
9. Luis Torrens – C

SP: Christian Scott – RHP

Nationals lineup

1. CJ Abrams – SS
2. Abimelec Ortiz – 1B
3. Dylan Crews – RF
4. Daylen Lile – LF
5. Brady House – 3B
6. Jorbit Vivas – 2B
7. Andres Chaparro – DH
8. Keibert Ruiz – C
9. Jacob Young – CF

SP: Jake Irvin – RHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 1:40 PM EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

Boston Red Sox vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, August 16, 2026, 1:35 p.m. ET

The Pittsburgh Pirates are finishing a three-game set as they take on the Boston Red Sox at PNC Park.

Paul Skenes is getting the ball for the Pirates in this matchup. Skenes has lost three of his last four starts, including his last appearance against the Miami Marlins on August 11. He pitched only five innings, giving up five hits and one earned run in a 2-0 loss on the road.

Skenes dealt with a span of nearly two months, from May 17 to July 1, before rattling off three straight victories in the middle of July. He has dropped his last four games, and the Pirates have needed him to get back on track. Perhaps this is the game to do it.

The Red Sox are going with Patrick Sandoval, who is making his seventh start of the season. In his last appearance on August 11 against the Toronto Blue Jays, Sandoval had his longest outing of the year, with six innings, giving up eight hits and two runs in a 5-3 loss to the Blue Jays at Rogers Center. It was Sandoval’s first loss of the year, and he’s using this start as a chance to get that sour taste out of his mouth.

Location: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA

Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh

Pitching Matchup: Patrick Sandoval (1-1, 3.30 ERA) vs. Paul Skenes (9-11, 3.88 ERA)

BD community, chime off in the comments section below.

The Dodgers and their weary bullpen are 10 days into a stretch of 13 game days in a row, with the only thing standing between them and a rest day are the Colorado Rockies at the pitching slaughterhouse known as Coors Field in Denver.

Blake Snell was terrific last Tuesday in his return from three months on the injured list with 10 strikeouts in six strong innings against the Kansas City Royals. He’ll take the ball on Monday night in Colorado.

Tomoyuki Sugano starts for the Rockies, in his second year in MLB after last season with the Baltimore Orioles. Shohei Ohtani has five hits in eight at-bats against Sugano with three home runs and a double.

Monday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Rockies
• Ballpark: Coors Field, Denver
• Start time: 5:40 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

The Phillies will go for a sweep over the Minnesota Twins at Target Field on Sunday.

Andrew Painter gets the start for the Phillies. The rookie is just 2-8 with a 6.27 ERA but has looked much better since returning from the minors.

Sunday baseball#RingTheBellpic.twitter.com/T7snCF9ue8

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 16, 2026

The Twins will go with Dean Kremer. The veteran trade pickup was bad with the Orioles, but is 1-0 with a 1.50 ERA in two starts with the Twins.

Game time is 2:10 Eastern and will be televised locally on NBCSP.

On Sunday, the Detroit Tigers promoted left-handed hitting outfielder Brett Callahan from Triple-A to the major league club. To open a spot on the active roster as well as on the 40-man roster, outfielder Trei Cruz has been designated for assignment.

The 24-year-old Callahan has been a really nice success story even to get to this point. He was the Tigers 13th rounder out of Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia back in the 2023 draft. He signed for $197,500 and made his pro debut for Low-A Lakeland late in the 2023 season. Callahan was banged up quite a bit in 2024 and again in 2025, but once he finally got beyond the injury bug, he made rapid progress in the second half of the 2025 season at High-A West Michigan.

Callahan had no helium coming out of a small college as a late round selection, but we identified the natural loft in his swing and pull-hitter tendencies early on, along with solid plate discipline and a good all-around toolkit, and ranked him 36th in the system heading into 2025. After a strong second half last year in West Michigan, he made a little noise in major league camp back in the spring, hitting a pair of pretty majestic home runs. We ranked him 26th in the farm system back in January, and Callahan then proceeded to tear through the Eastern League with the Double-A Erie SeaWolves. He hit .268/.374/.504 with 12 home runs, 20 stolen bases, and a 133 wRC+ in 265 plate appearances there, with a strikeout rate of 20.8 percent against a walk rate of 12.8 percent. As a result he’s been one of the biggest risers on national prospect lists this year.

Callahan was promoted to Triple-A Toledo along with John Peck in late June. He is an aggressive swinger who, like Hao-Yu Lee, rarely gets cheated at the plate. Callahan will take his walks, but he will still chase out of the zone too much, posting a 34.6 O-swing rate in Toledo. His strikeout rate has spiked up to 25.8 percent with the Mud Hens, and while that wasn’t a surprise, the chase rate will have to improve for Callahan to hang and ultimately thrive in the major leagues. Improving his approach at the Triple-A level was the final key to reaching the Show but he hasn’t had enough time there to work on it yet. Even so, he manages to do damage on mistake pitches even when he’s not running hot, and the Tigers might catch a bit of fire with him in a short first look at the major leagues.

Typically playing right field, but good in either corner, Callahan has enough speed and experience to handle center field, but his plus arm plays more effectively from the corners. He’s capable of stealing some bases as well. Overall it’s a pretty well-rounded profile, but he’ll likely struggle to adapt to the type of sequencing major league hitters can deal out to an aggressive young hitter. There’s still a ceiling here in which Callahan hits like Kerry Carpenter while playing better defense, but he’ll have to adapt to better pitching and put together a more disciplined approach at the plate to get enough pitches he can drive for damage.

The Tigers today selected the contract of OF Brett Callahan from Triple-A Toledo. Callahan, who will wear uniform #34, joins the first major league roster of his professional career.

OF Trei Cruz has been designated for assignment.

— Tigers PR (@DetroitTigersPR) August 16, 2026

This is the first season where Callahan has cleared 300 plate appearances, and those injuries stunted his progress for a while in pro ball. Despite his age, he really hasn’t had a long stretch of uninterrupted reps until this season, and since he’s been healthy he’s moved quickly through the system. We like him, but this is coming really quickly after his promotion to Triple-A Toledo, and he is going to have some struggles adapting to the major league level. That may be somewhat balanced out by the fact that he has a pretty well rounded game and will do some things to help his team win in the field and on the basepaths as well. Either way, the Tigers need some temporary corner outfield help, and Callahan has more to offer at this point than Cruz.

As for Trei Cruz, injuries in his mid-20’s, including Tommy John surgery in 2024, interrupted his development in some crucial years. He bounced back with a really good 2025 campaign that got him added to the 40-man, but wasn’t able to show much in his major league debut. He has really struggled at the Triple-A level after dealing with another injury early in the season. Now 28 years old, there just wasn’t a big breakout coming, but Cruz did become the third generation of his family to reach the major leagues and may eventually find his way to some work as a utilityman somewhere.

It can take years for players to firmly establish themselves in St. Louis Cardinals lore, given their 145-year history.

Joshua Báez did so in one game.

By hitting three home runs in his first three major league at-bats, Báez, 21, provided an unprecedented and unforgettable debut. Though fervent Cardinals fans and prospect hounds certainly anticipated Báez's arrival from Class AAA Memphis, he nonetheless was the club's No. 3 prospect and ranked a consensus top 50 prospect in all the game.

Just where did Báez come from and how did he announce his arrival so definitively? Let's explore:

Who is Joshua Báez?

Wrigley Field was filled with a significant Báez cheering section - an international cadre of supporters - for his Saturday, Aug. 16 debut. Báez was born in Boston, yet his family moved to the Dominican Republic when he was just months old. They eventually returned to the Boston area.

Báez eventually filled out his frame - he's listed at a linebacker-esque 6-3, 220 pounds - and put his raw power and overall athleticism on display as an amateur. Perfect Game ranked him the No. 1 prospect in Massachusetts, the No. 2 outfielder in the USA and No. 7 overall in 2021

He was also a two-way star, topping out at 96 mph on the mound. But it was clear hitting was his future, and he secured a college commitment to Vanderbilt.

How did the Cardinals acquire Josh Báez?

But Báez never made it to Nashville. The Cardinals chose him with the 54th overall pick in the draft, right behind Cincinnati Reds All-Star pitcher Andrew Abbott and eight picks before the San Diego Padres chose eventual two-time All-Star slugger James Wood.

He was signed to a $2.25 million bonus, more than sufficient to buy him out of his Vanderbilt commitment.

Joshua Báez minor league statistics

His first full pro season in 2022 was limited to 32 games, though Báez, then 19, managed to hit four homers and post an .870 OPS in that small sample. He repeated low A in 2023 and finally graduated to high Class A Peoria (Ill.) in 2024, but struck out 114 times in 86 games across the two levels.

Then came the breakout.

Báez needed just 38 games to leave A ball behind in 2025, earning a promotion to Class AA for the final 79 games of the year. And he made the leap deftly, posting his first 20-homer season with a combined .884 OPS. That earned him a ticket to Class AAA to begin his season - and Báez's story picked up steam.

Joshua Báez's tribute to his father

If Báez was surely on the scouting community's radar by now - he was ranked 54th overall by Baseball America, 87th by MLB Pipeline entering this season - his narrative became far widely known thanks to one night in June. Báez's father, passed away on June 16, 2023.

Two months ago, on the third anniversary of his father's death, Báez showed his flair for the dramatic: He hit a career-best four home runs for Class AAA Memphis, a night that brought his mother to tears.

"Today was just really emotional," Báez said, per MILB.com. "I was just trying to push through, and it's just insane I was able to hit four home runs in one night."

What's Joshua Báez's future with Cardinals?

Báez's splash debut couldn't have been better synced to the Cardinals' re-tooling program - and their surprise run into contention that's come with it. While the Cardinals have faded from serious wild-card contention, they remain geared toward near-term contention. Their trade deadline deal sending Lars Nootbaar to Arizona opened up at-bats in the outfield, and now left field should belong to Báez.

With Jordan Walker's breakout season finally arriving, the Cardinals potentially have a daunting look in the corner outfield spots in coming years.

Not to get too far ahead of ourselves. Báez will eventually swing and miss at a pitch. His OPS won't be 3.500 forever. Yet the baseball world surely knows his name now. And all signs point to him staying very front of mind in coming years.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Joshua Báez? Cardinals rookie's three-homer debut years in the making

LOS ANGELES — Reggie Smith got his moment in the sun on Saturday at Dodger Stadium, as he was inducted into the Legends of Dodger Baseball ahead of the Dodgers game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Smith was surrounded by many of his former teammates from his six seasons with the Dodgers, which included pennants in 1977, 1978, and 1981, and a championship in that final trip to the Fall Classic.

“Those are pretty good ball clubs right there,” Smith said in a group interview before the ceremony. “It’s teammates like that that help to push you and inspire you do good things as we did for one another.”

Catcher Steve Yeager was in attendance, and said in a video, “Reggie Smith is a complete winner in any way, shape, or form.”

“There’s nothing he couldn’t do on a baseball field,” said Dusty Baker, who was inducted into the Legends of Dodger Baseball in 2024. “He had a shotgun arm, he had power, he was a great baserunner, a tremendous defensive player. And above all, probably one of the smartest baseball players that I’ve never been around.”

Eric Karros, who was rising through the Dodgers’ system when Smith was the organization’s minor league coordinator called Smith, “Probably outside of my father, and Tommy [Lasorda], probably the most impactful person for me in my career.”

The 81-year-old Smith was also surrounded by family, and was particularly happy that his 93-year-old brother and 95-year-old sister were in attendance as well.

Before the ceremony recounted his friendship with Dave Roberts, which goes back nearly three decades and includes annual trips to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It began when Smith was the hitting coach for Team USA in the Pan American Games in 1999, and Roberts was a player.

“We connected then and maintained that connection,” Smith said Saturday. “Dave is a good friend, and he’s like a son to me, but he’s also one of our group, we call ourselves The Outlaws.”

Among the highlights of the ceremony was speaker Rick Monday citing examples of Smith being someone the players listened to, and joked that Smith didn’t like being told he hit better left-handed than right-handed.

(Editor’s note: In Smith’s career, the switch-hitter hit .287/.369/.503 batting left-handed, and .288/.359/.455 right-handed. Monday was correct.)

In Smith’s first two full seasons with the Dodgers (1977-78), he finished fourth in National League MVP voting in both years.

“I don’t feel I was overlooked. I had a job to do,” Smith explained Saturday. “It was about trying to bring a world championship to Los Angeles, and played with a great bunch of guys.”

Among that great bunch of guys on hand for Saturday’s ceremony were Steve Garvey, Ron Cey, Baker, and Manny Mota, all Legends of Dodger Baseball. Also there were fellow former teammates Yeager, Bill Russell, Ken Landreaux, Jerry Reuss, Charlie Hough, Derrel Thomas, Lee Lacy, Jerry Rotster.

Before the ceremony, Smith stumped for Davey Lopes — who passed away in April — and Russell to also be inducted into the Legends of Dodger Baseball, so that all four members of the Dodgers famed infield that played together for eight and a half seasons would be together permanently at Dodger Stadium. Smith also ended his speech on the field calling for Lopes and Russell’s induction as well.

The Atlanta Braves have selected left-handed reliever Ray Kerr to the the big league roster and designated fellow lefty Danny Young for assignment.

For Kerr, this would be his first big league action since 2024 when he underwent “Tommy John” surgery on his pitching elbow. Kerr has been making steady progress in Atlanta’s minor league system as the 31-year-old, who will turn 32 next month, has been working for another opportunity with the major league club.

Kerr has pitched in nine games across four levels this season. Although he’s tossed only 11.2 innings he has struck out 16 batters. He made 10 appearances for the Braves in 2024 – including two starts, oddly enough, prior to falling to injury.

As for Young, this was not a surprising outcome given the lack of success he had in his returns engagement with Atlanta this season. He previously pitched for the Braves in 2022 and 2023. Young, 32, saw action in 16 games this season but has ghastly 8.03 ERA after allowing runs in each of his last four outings including a two-run appearance and two three-run stints, including last night.

Kerr will essentially replace Young as the last lefty in the bullpen. His spot on the roster could be short given AJ Smith-Shawver’s expected recall in the next few days.

An injury in college turned out to be a good break for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders righty relief pitcher Chris Kean.

The 24-year-old from Harlingen, Texas, was a catcher at the University of Louisiana-Monroe in 2023 when he suffered a broken foot that sidelined him for the first six weeks of the Warhawks season. It was during that time when one of his coaches suggested he become a full-time pitcher.

“He sat me down and said, ‘Look at some of these numbers you’ve got on the mound. They’re pretty good. You should really give this a chance,’” Kean said.

In high school and at Ranger College, a Texas JuCo where Kean played before Louisiana-Monroe, he did some pitching. In fact, a coach at Ranger also had suggested Kean switch to pitching.

“I was kind of on board and then I had a couple rough outings and I was like, No, I want to catch. I want to play every day. I want to hit,” Kean said. “So I guess there was a little (resistance) earlier in my amateur career. But I just want to play baseball every day. I just want to go out and play the sport as long as possible and be a big kid for as long as possible.”

So this time, Kean took the suggestion seriously. It seems to have worked out for him.

He was promoted from Double-A Somerset to the Triple-A RailRiders on July 7. He is a combined 2-2 with six holds, two saves and a 4.34 earned-run average in 37 games this season. He has struck out 57 in 47.2 innings and walked only nine.

When Kean switched to pitching at Louisiana-Monroe, he appeared in four games in 2023 and was 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA and seven strikeouts in 4.2 innings. Then, he suffered an arm injury that cost him the final five weeks of the season. He underwent Tommy John surgery.

Those two injuries caused his draft stock to diminish. But the Yankees signed him as an undrafted free agent in July 2023.

January 2022 Chris Kean went with the team to play at the Yankee Complex in Florida. Fast forward to 2023 and he returned to that same complex but this time he had some business to take care of. #mlb#rangerbaseball#pressuremakesdiamonds#signedpic.twitter.com/Apr1lRJwX3

— Ranger College Baseball (@RangerBaseball_) July 14, 2023

“I just had TJ and the Yankees really took a chance on me and gave me an opportunity. I’m very thankful,” Kean said.

“It was a dream come true. It gives me chills just thinking about it. It makes every moment a little more special. Sometimes you can get overlooked and maybe not on the top prospect list, whatever it may be. You just keep your head down, keep on grinding and try to do your best every day.”

Healthy for the 2024 campaign, he appeared in 25 games with the Florida Complex League Yankees and Low-A Tampa Tarpons and was a combined 2-1 with one hold, three saves, a 1.08 ERA, and 44 strikeouts in 33.1 innings. He spent all of 2025 with High-A Hudson Valley and made 33 relief appearances, going 6-2 with five holds, a 3.48 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 41.1 innings.

The Renegades are making a call to the bullpen brought to you by @SoFi now pitching for the 'Gades, Chris Kean pic.twitter.com/FkOt7NvJvP

— Hudson Valley Renegades (@HVRenegades) April 19, 2025

This season, Kean made 26 appearances out of the bullpen for Somerset and was 1-2 with five holds, two saves, a 3.34 ERA, and 43 strikeouts in 35 innings before being promoted.

There were a lot of adjustments Kean had to make in becoming a pitcher. Being a catcher helped a little bit.

“As a catcher, you’re in the mind of the pitcher a little bit,” he said. “You get on the same page as him and work together.”

Perhaps the biggest change was not playing every day, yet having to be ready when the bullpen phone rings and your number is called.

“As a relief pitcher, I just want to be valuable,” Kean said. “Do the things you need to do to prepare yourself to be there every day and the rest is just modalities that might make you one percent better, but it’s not an absolute needed thing. You never know when you’re going to go in, you never know the situation you’re going into. It’s just making sure you’re prepared on a moment’s notice. Be a minuteman.”

Also, there is the waiting if you have a poor outing.

“As a hitter, you go 0-for-4, you get four ABs the next day. As a pitcher, you might not pitch for three days,” Kean said. “You learn to be patient and learn the hill you’re willing to die on. I want to get beat by my strengths, my pitches and try to limit as many free passes as possible. If I’m doing that, I can live with the outcome.”

Going from Double-A to Triple-A has brought adjustments as well. There is the use of the ABS System and a different ball. The one in Double-A has higher seams, while the Triple-A ball is manufactured to MLB standards with lower seams.

“It’s baseball at the end of the day,” Kean said. “No matter the circumstances, you have to go out there and compete. Try your best no matter what and it is what it is.”

Upon joining the RailRiders, Kean did not allow a run in his first four games. He gave up 10 runs in his next five appearances, but has not yielded a run in his last two outings.

“I’m very blessed to be here,” Kean said. “I’m just trying to take in every moment and learn from each guy. There’s a lot of experience in the clubhouse. I just want to learn from every experience and every opportunity I get.”

Kean wasn’t the only one in his family who made a change. Although he hails from Texas, his father Jeff is originally from Boston and a big Boston sports fan — Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics, Patriots (à la Cam Schlittler).

When his son signed with the Yankees, however, Jeff Kean had to switch allegiances.

“I still have family who are Red Sox fans,” Chris Kean said. “They try to give me a hard time. They still put on the (Red Sox) jersey.

“He was very happy, very proud. He made a joke: The Yankees took my son, too. Now obviously he’s a Yankee. He’s all in. I got him all the gear, he wears all the gear. He’s bought in now. I’m glad to change him.”